


Roman Mission

by coffeebean87



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Buckynat Mini-Bang 2016, Developing Relationship, F/M, Past Relationship(s), Post-Civil War (Marvel)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-06
Updated: 2016-04-06
Packaged: 2018-05-31 15:30:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6475825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coffeebean87/pseuds/coffeebean87
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky and Natasha go on a mission to Rome to gather evidence against a businessmen who allegedly has connections to HYDRA.  While on mission, they reminisce about their past missions together, although neither of them is certain that the other remembers their past relationship, until the final day of their mission.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Roman Mission

It was the beginning of a bright and sunny morning at the Avengers’ base. In one room, a dark-haired man was awakened from a light, somewhat restless sleep. “Sergeant Barnes,” a voice stated over the intercom, “You are needed in the debriefing room.” At that moment, Bucky Barnes, also known as the Winter Soldier, leapt out of bed and proceeded to get dressed. Bucky looked at his alarm clock. It was 7:00 in the morning. Not that he minded having to wake up early. Sleep was never an easy thing for him. When all the memories of the horrors he had committed as the Winter Soldier came back to haunt him most of the time he tried to sleep, it was hard to enjoy a good night’s rest. Bucky got dressed quickly and within ten minutes he was on his way to the debriefing room.

In another room in the base, a red-haired woman was also awakened from a light, somewhat restless sleep. “Agent Romanoff,” a voice said over the intercom, “You are needed in the debriefing room.” Natasha Romanoff, also known as the Black Widow, stirred and got out of bed. She reached into her closet and began to get dressed. Natasha glanced at her cell phone. “7:00 A.M.,” the phone read. Natasha then put the phone down. She did not mind having to wake up early. After having been an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and an Avenger for several years, she was accustomed to waking up early. Sleep was also never quite an easy thing for her, with all the memories of her experiences in the Red Room and everything she was forced to do frequently coming back to haunt her. As soon as she was dressed and ready, Natasha immediately proceeded to the debriefing room.

Bucky made his way down the corridors to the debriefing room. At the door, he came face to face with Natasha. “Good morning Natalia,” he said, with some uneasiness in his voice.

“Good morning James,” Natasha responded with the same uneasiness in her voice. Not too long ago, Natasha had mistrusted Bucky. Bucky did not blame her, considering his brainwashing at the hands of HYDRA and the fact that he had shot Natasha twice while under HYDRA’s influence. However, it was also not that long ago that Natasha and Bucky, as well as their friends, had been gridlocked in a Superhero Civil War, with the two of them fighting on different sides. However, Bucky had also remembered Natasha from the Red Room and how, all those years ago, she had brought light to his dark world. As a result, he had come to her aid just as she was being overpowered by a group of HYDRA agents who had decided to take advantage of the situation. They fought the agents off and began to notice just how well they worked together as a team. Now, with the Civil War behind them, they were working together more and starting to trust each other, but they still did not trust each other fully.

The doors to the debriefing room opened and Fury beckoned Bucky and Natasha to sit at the conference table in the middle of the room. He pulled out a tablet and showed them a photograph of a man with dark blond hair who was wearing a business suit and speaking on a cell phone.

“This is Kevin Chambers,” Fury explained. “He comes across as running a legitimate energy management business, but we have minimal information that he might be selling some of his products to HYDRA. We know that he will be in Rome next week on a business trip, and we think he might be making his next sell there. You two have considerable experience in the spy arena. What do you say?”

Natasha eyed Fury and said, “Count me in Nick.”

Bucky looked at Fury and said, “I’m more than up for it, but I admit that I’m more of an assassin than a spy.”

“But who else on the team besides Natasha speaks multiple languages and has a specialized knowledge of most types of weapons?” Fury asked, casting Bucky a knowing look.

Bucky eyed Fury and replied, “I guess you’re right.”

Within days, Bucky and Natasha received their tickets to Rome and were given all of the information that S.H.I.E.L.D. could conjure up about Chambers. Natasha perused the file she was given quickly. Fury was not kidding when he said that Chambers was highly skilled at hiding his supposedly illegal activities. “Well,” Natasha thought, “I just have to hope that he’s only slightly smarter than me.” She felt confident that with her and Bucky on this mission, they would be able to bring Chambers and his cell down. “Just so long as James has broken free of HYDRA enough in order to be able to fight them,” Natasha thought to herself.

A few days later, Natasha and Bucky’s plane touched down at Rome’s Fiumcino Airport and they were on their way to the hotel room they would be sharing in the Italian capital. Upon arrival, the manager at the front desk examined the confirmation. “Signor and Signora Johnson,” he said as he read the confirmation. He handed them a set of two keys to their room and said, “Enjoy your stay in this wonderful city.”

Bucky and Natasha then entered the hotel room. It came complete with a double bed and a couch. “I can take the couch,” Bucky said, looking at Natasha. “You can have the bed.”

Natasha shook her head and said, “No, we need to share the bed. We need to look convincing you know, Mr. Johnson,” she said with a witty smile on her face.

Bucky looked dumbstruck for a moment, which made Natasha want to laugh, and she fought to suppress the impending giggle. He finally shrugged his shoulders and said, “Well, you’re the expert, Mrs. Johnson.” Bucky placed his bag on the bag and said, “Okay, we share.”

Natasha sat beside Bucky on the couch. “Do you think you’re prepared for this mission?” she asked.

Bucky nodded. “I think so,” he replied. “I did have some experience as a spy before my handlers decided to make me more of an assassin. I guess whatever experiences I had will start coming back to me. I can always count on you if I get rusty, though.”

Natasha nodded in response. She did not say, though, that she knew of most of Bucky’s experiences as a spy. She knew because she had been present with Bucky on most of those missions. She was not sure if he completely remembered that detail, though. Although the doctors who were working with Bucky had revealed that he seemed to have vague memories of red hair, ballet, and having a female companion on some of his old missions, Natasha could not be sure if he remembered everything. Knowing how hard Bucky was trying to regain his memories, it was best not to pressure him, especially in the middle of a mission.

Across the couch, Bucky exchanged a sad smile with Natasha. He was thinking to himself that Natasha likely had some firsthand knowledge of his work as a spy. Bucky had reached a point where at least some of the details of his relationship with Natasha before she defected to S.H.I.E.L.D. had returned to him. The problem, though, was that he was not sure if she remembered any of these details herself. Bucky was well aware that the Red Room and HYDRA were masters at brainwashing and planting false memories into the minds of people in order to ensure their loyalty. Who knew what brainwashing and false memories Natasha had been subjected to? Not to mention the fact that he still felt guilty about shooting her. The last thing he wanted was to reveal to Natasha something about herself that she possibly did not know about and frighten her off.

The next morning, Natasha and Bucky walked from their hotel to the Roman Forum. They had received word that Chambers would likely spend his first couple of days in Rome enjoying the art and ruins as a cover for potential deals with HYDRA. They arrived at the ruins and sure enough, Chambers and a group of men, likely his potential business partners, were there taking photos of the Temple of Saturn. Bucky and Natasha watched him closely, both wearing sunglasses and pretending to be reading maps of the Forum. After Chambers and the others finished their photo session, they proceeded to talk to one another in hushed voices. Natasha and Bucky strode towards them under the guise of wanting to get a closer look at the temple, trying hard to listen to what was being said without giving away that they were listening.

“Look at this place,” one of the men was saying. “This is what happens when an Empire goes soft. An Empire must be strong if it is to go on for all time. May we count on your promise to help provide the support necessary for that strength Mr. Chambers?”

Chambers smiled and said in a low voice, “You know you can always count on my support. I strive to keep a strong business, so I understand your need. Meet me at Il Gabriello tomorrow night at 7:30. We can discuss the deal further.” With that, the two men shook hands and leaned in to whisper something to each other. Bucky could not hear what they were saying, but he felt with certainty that it was the infamous words “Hail HYDRA!” He even had to turn his head the other way so that Chambers and his companion could not see the uneasy look on his face.

Chambers and his group parted. Natasha looked at Bucky and whispered, “I think we just witnessed a deal in the works.”

“I agree,” Bucky replied. “We better observe closely to see what their next move will be.”

Natasha immediately made a dinner reservation for the two of them at Il Gabriello. She could see why Chambers and his cohorts had picked this place. It had a dining room below street level and it was quite popular with tourists. “They get the benefit of both being unseen and not being overheard,” Natasha thought to herself. It was difficult to find a table at first with the amount of reservations, but lucky for Natasha and Bucky, one couple elected to dine elsewhere that night. The following evening, Natasha and Bucky walked arm in arm to the restaurant. He was dressed in a crisp black suit while she was dressed in an emerald green sundress. Once they arrived, the host led them to their table.

“Ready for this James?” she whispered as they took their seats.

“I am,” he responded. Bucky gazed at Natasha. She was always quite the looker, but tonight she looked stunning in her green dress. “You look wonderful,” he blurted out without thinking too much.

Natasha looked taken aback a bit. She immediately gained her composure though and said, “Thanks.” She then looked pensive for a moment and added, “Sweetheart.”

Natasha tried to keep the appearance of a happily married woman out on a date with her husband look convincing, but it was now proving difficult. Was it possible that Bucky did remember more of their past together? She decided not to press the matter further, though, as Chambers and his cronies were just arriving.

Bucky tried not to look too embarrassed, especially considering the fact that Chambers and his associates were seated not too far away from his and Natasha’s table. Maybe Natasha did remember more of their past relationship than he realized. He knew, though, that he had more important matters to attend to than figuring that question out.

Bucky and Natasha ordered red wine and spaghetti dishes. He ordered spaghetti with pomodoro sauce while Natasha ordered spaghetti with clams. Bucky watched as Natasha removed the clam shells from her plate. She looked at him and asked, “Want to try some?”

“Sure,” he replied, taking some of her spaghetti off her plate and giving her some of his in return. They tried each of the spaghettis on their plates. Bucky savored the taste of both the pomodoro sauce and the clam sauce. Each was good in its own way and he could not decide which he liked better. “This is good,” he said as Natasha ate hers.

She nodded in agreement. Both the spaghetti with pomodoro sauce and the spaghetti with clam sauce were savory. It was hard to decide which she liked better. She swallowed and said, “This is nice.” Natasha began to realize that she was being sincere when she said this. She was truly beginning to feel like she was enjoying her night with Bucky.

Bucky tried not to look too taken aback when he heard Natasha say, “This is nice.” As she said those words, Bucky could not help but feel that she meant what she was saying. Perhaps at long last she was starting to trust him more. However, he did not want to push her. He regained his composure and responded, “Yes it is.”

Before they could talk anymore, though, they managed to hear Chambers and the rest of the diners at his table discussing what sounded like a potential sale. “Yes,” Chambers was saying. “I can provide you with the best quality product that you need for your arsenal. It is of the make you need, and has all of the essential features. However, I cannot agree to the price you are offering. I do need to run a business you know.”

“Very well,” the potential buyer was responding. “We’ll raise the price. However, the price range you are suggesting is far too high. How can we succeed in our campaign if we are forced to pay exorbitant amounts of money for what we need?”

Chambers was about to respond when a waiter came to their table and asked if they wanted the check. It seemed obvious to Bucky and Natasha that Chambers and the others needed more time before they could reach an agreement. As a result, Chambers responded that yes, they did want the check. As the waiter left the table, Chambers leaned over beside the man who was sitting next to him and whispered something in his ear. The man nodded his head seemingly in agreement. As soon as the check was paid, Chambers and his men left in a hurry.

Bucky looked at Natasha and asked, “What do you think their next move is?”

Natasha replied, “No doubt they plan to meet somewhere else tomorrow to complete their deal. I have an idea how we might figure out where, though.”

As soon as Bucky and Natasha paid their check, they got up to leave. Natasha then proceeded to drop some spare change over by the table where Chambers and his potential business partners had sat. She looked at Bucky and said, in an audible voice, “Could you pick up those coins sweetheart? I’m in no shape to bend over in this dress.”

Bucky did so and managed to find a dropped brochure for the Vatican Museum under the table. He hid it in his coat pocket. As soon as he and Natasha returned to their hotel, he showed the brochure to Natasha.

“I guess this is where we’re going tomorrow,” Natasha said as she examined the brochure. “We should probably go in the late morning. By then, the lines will start to dwindle, but it will still be crowded enough. It’s the ideal time for Chambers and HYDRA to discuss their deal further.”

Natasha and Bucky then got into bed, lying there side by side. Natasha was deep in her thoughts. Had she truly been sincere when she was saying that her evening with Bucky was nice? Was she starting to trust him more now that she was working with him? She glanced over at Bucky. He seemed to be deep in his thoughts as well. She tapped Bucky on his right shoulder. He looked at her in response. Natasha hesitated for a moment and asked, “Did you enjoy tonight?”

Bucky thought for a moment and replied, “I think so. Sure it’s exciting to be in Rome on a mission against HYDRA. But, if you don’t mind me saying, I’m enjoying working with you on this mission. You’re great at what you do, and the fact that you’re doing it all to atone for everything you did as part of the Red Room speaks volumes about you. You’re one of the most inspirational people I know. You never fail to amaze me.”

Natasha could feel herself blushing and quickly responded, “Thank you. You know, if you don’t mind me saying, you’re pretty amazing too. I know both the Red Room and HYDRA unmade you and forged you into what they wanted you to be. Yet, you overcame it, and your need for atonement shows that you are strong and you can move forward. You always did impress me.”

Bucky smiled at that. He then realized that a part of him wanted to kiss Natasha. However, he rolled back over and said to her, “We better get some sleep.” He was glad to hear her say in response, “I agree.” Sure they were beginning to feel more comfortable around each other, but for some reason, Bucky did not feel that it was quite the right time. Right now, he needed to focus on completing the mission. He would worry about his feelings about Natasha later.

Natasha rolled onto her back and tried to go to sleep. She could tell that she had been tempted to kiss Bucky. However, she knew that now was not quite the time to be looking for romance. While it was becoming apparent to her that she was growing more comfortable with working with Bucky and that she might still have some lingering feelings for him, completion of the mission was more important. She would sort out her feelings for Bucky as soon as it was over.

The next morning, Natasha and Bucky walked to the Vatican Museum. Bucky looked at the line to get inside. Sure enough, it was beginning to dwindle, just as Natasha predicted it would. They got in line to wait to be admitted. Bucky looked ahead of him and saw, much to his relief that Chambers and some of the men he had been with at Il Gabriello the previous night were there. Natasha had been correct when she said that they would be there. He tapped her on the shoulder, and as soon as she looked up at him, he pointed forward. She looked ahead then looked back at him.

“Good work,” he said. “Now let’s see what agreement those guys come up with.”

Natasha and Bucky watched Chambers and the rest of his associates make their way to the exhibits housing the ancient Roman art. “How fitting,” Natasha thought. “They’re going to look at art from a regime that fell. If all goes according to plan, James and I can help prevent them from even starting theirs.” The men paused in front of a statute of Emperor Augustus. “This isn’t surprising either,” Natasha thought. “They want to conduct their deal in front of a statue of a man who helped transform the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. All we need is the right information to prevent them from succeeding in creating a new empire.”

Chambers faced the man he had been speaking with the previous night and asked, “Now, where were we in our negotiations last night? Ah yes, you wanted me to lower the price that I was offering you. You know I originally offered $15 million. You wanted it lowered to $5 million. I’ll sell you the weapons for $10 million, and we have a deal.”

The other man thought for a moment and replied, “It still seems somewhat high. We’ll give you $8 million and call it a day.”

Chambers then looked at the man square in the eyes and said, “You will pay me $9 million. Nothing more and nothing less.”

The man shrugged his shoulders and said, “It’s a deal. We will pay you $9 million for what you are willing to supply us.” He then said in a barely audible voice, “I’ve rented a villa on the outskirts of the city. You can come there tonight and we can finalize the agreement. I’m throwing a gala party to cover up our deal, so come in a tux.”

Bucky looked at Natasha, “It looks like we have what we need.”

“Yes,” Natasha replied. “I have a hunch, though, that we might find out more at that gala tonight. I hope you packed a tux.”

Bucky looked at her and said, “As a matter of fact I did. I am starting to recall some missions where I had to infiltrate high society gatherings. Those are probably the only ones that I have any real fond memories of. Not because of what I was set out to accomplish of course, but because I had a partner on those missions who was beautiful, smart, and the only thing that brought any real happiness during those years.”

Natasha hesitated to speak. She knew beyond certainty that that partner was her. This was her confirmation. Bucky likely did remember her and her time together. Perhaps now was the time to ask him. She looked at Bucky and asked, “Do you remember it all? Our time together when I was young?”

Bucky smiled sadly and replied, “Yeah, I remember everything, Natalia.” He paused for a moment. “And you were the one good thing in all of it.”

Natasha could not help but smile at that. Moments later, she leaned toward Bucky, placed her hand on his shoulder where the metal of his arm met his flesh and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. She then pulled away and said, “A little something to let you know I haven’t forgotten either. You were the only good thing in all of it too.”

Bucky could not stop himself from grinning. She did remember him after all. He felt happy and relieved to know this. At that moment, he knew he wanted to kiss her back. However, when he looked at Natasha she looked serious again.

When Natasha saw the slightly dejected look on Bucky’s face, she said, “We should complete the mission first James. We can talk about this later.”

Bucky looked at her and said, “I understand.”

When they returned to their hotel, Bucky and Natasha changed into their formal wear. Bucky changed into a black tuxedo with a black tie while Natasha changed into a cherry red floor-length dress. Bucky looked at her after she had changed and said, “Oh wow, you look stunning.”

Natasha brushed him off and responded, “You look pretty handsome yourself.” She helped Bucky straighten his tie a bit and proceeded to look through some of the files that S.H.I.E.L.D. gave them. Natasha managed to find the face of the man who had invited Chambers to the gala. His was identified as Greg Gamble, a businessman who appeared to have political ambitions. The file also turned up the address of a Roman villa owned by one Gregory Gamble that was just on the outskirts of the city.

Bucky looked at her and asked, “Don’t we need an invitation to get into this party?”

Natasha reached into her bag and pulled out two invitations, “Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered. I’ve managed to dig up some information on Gamble on previous missions, but not quite enough to make him a person of interest. It is common knowledge that he likes to have extravagant parties for his business associates at his villa. It seemed logical that Chambers would want to close the deal in a place like that. I suppose my instincts proved right.”

Bucky looked at her in admiration and said, “Like I said, you always amaze me.” As he and Natasha walked out of the hotel room, he put his metal arm around her and said, “Okay, let’s go and get these guys before it’s too late.”

By the time Bucky and Natasha arrived at the villa, the gala had already started. They showed their invitations to an attendant standing at the front door. He proceeded to let them into the party. Inside were more men in tuxes and more women in glamourous dresses. Natasha and Bucky approached a bartender who was just finishing a couple of martinis for two other guests.

“Two glasses of Orvieto wine, please,” Natasha said. The bartender reached into a refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of Orvieto white wine. He placed a set of two wine glasses on the counter and was about to begin pouring the wine when Natasha said, “May I do the honors?” The bartender took his hands off the bottle of wine and allowed Natasha to pour the liquid into the glasses. Bucky and Natasha picked up the glasses and sniffed the wine to ensure that nothing had been added to their drinks. Neither of them sensed any known drugs or poisons.

“Salute,” Natasha said as she and Bucky took a sip of their wine.

Bucky did not taste anything unusual as he took the first sip. Nevertheless, he began to feel dizzy. He realized in horror that somehow, someone had managed to drug the wine before it was opened. He tried hard to stop himself from falling asleep. The mission had to be completed, and he could not let HYDRA capture him and Natasha again! His thoughts, though, could not keep him from eventually hitting the floor and falling into a deep sleep.

Natasha too could feel drowsiness coming. Had Chambers and Gamble sensed they were coming after all? Clearly someone had managed to drug the wine before it was opened. She had to stay awake; she could not let HYDRA capture her and Bucky and brainwash them all over again! However, her thoughts and fears could not keep her awake. Within seconds, she too had fallen asleep on the floor.

Moments later, Bucky felt a hand slap him across the face. He tried to move his metal arm in order to punch whoever had slapped him, but he discovered to his horror that he was chained to a beam on the ceiling of the room he was in. His and Natasha’s captors appeared to have taken them to some kind of interrogation room in the basement of the villa. He saw Natasha chained to another beam at his left and it looked like the interrogator was about to slap her in the face. Bucky made an impulsive movement toward her, but he still could not break free.

Natasha felt a hand slap her in the face. She awakened to find herself chained to a beam in what appeared to be an interrogation room. Bucky was chained to another beam to her right and was already awake. She tried to reach him but soon realized that her wrists were chained to the beam.

The door opened and Chambers and Gamble walked in, both wearing arrogant smirks on their faces. “Well, well, well,” Gamble said in a quite condescending voice. “If it isn’t the infamous Winter Soldier and the deadly Black Widow. How nice of the two of you to join us.”

Natasha looked at Gamble and Chambers and said, “Why don’t you boys be real men and unchain us?”

“What do you want with us?” Bucky added.

Chambers pulled a set of photographs out of his pocket and showed them to Bucky and Natasha. There was a photograph of Bucky and Natasha pretending to be visiting the Forum, sitting at their table at Il Gabriello, and in the Vatican Museum surveying the Roman art. “Did you really think that we do not have eyes and ears of our own?” Chambers asked, letting out a small arrogant laugh. “We know that you have been tailing us, trying to put an end to our pending transaction.”

“How do you live with yourself, selling to scum like HYDRA?” Bucky retorted.

“Funny to hear the Winter Soldier referring to HYDRA as ‘scum,’” Chambers said with a snicker in his voice. “My energy management business alone gives me wealth that most people would envy, of course. It was not enough, though. Then HYDRA came along and promised me more wealth, as well as considerable power. It was an offer I could not refuse.”

“Don’t make me step on your moment,” Natasha snapped.

“Watch your mouth, Black Widow,” Gamble retorted. “Not to worry. We’re not going to kill you and your Winter Soldier, no,” he said with a sly tone in his voice. “We are going to take you to HYDRA’s lab and turn you into our agents. You will still get to work together, of course, but you will do HYDRA’s bidding for eons to come.”

Bucky felt he had to keep himself from vomiting at that prospect. The idea of HYDRA once again taking him for their own certainly repulsed him, but he could not stand the thought of them enslaving Natasha! After everything she had been through, he would not stand for anyone making her into nothing more than a weapon to be used! He had to break free, and with that thought, he began to try with all his might to break free of his restraints.

Natasha too was trying hard to break free from her restraints. She could not let them enslave her again and have her add more red to already dripping ledger! However, the thought of them taking Bucky once again and making him their asset disgusted her even more! After he had spent more than seven decades of his life on and off ice and with the sole purpose of being a weapon, she could not let that happen to him again! It was because of this that she tried all the harder to break free.

Within minutes, the beams cracked, and Bucky and Natasha managed to slide down onto the floor. They fought off Chambers and Gamble with whatever moves they could come up while bound. However, the door soon opened, and about ten HYDRA with stun guns came rushing in. Bucky and Natasha had to duck several times in order to avoid being stunned.

Natasha cast a look at Bucky. He nodded his head. They needed to maneuver their moves so that the attackers would stun each other rather than themselves. They did so and within minutes, every agent in the room had stunned him or herself, along with Chambers and Gamble. Bucky rolled Chambers over and a key fell from his pocket. Bucky kicked the key toward Natasha, and she proceeded to free herself, using her spider-like physical skills. She then proceeded to free Bucky. “Thanks,” he said. “We better inform Fury and the others that we might have them.”

“Good idea,” Natasha replied. “Let’s do it before they wake up.” She pulled out what looked like a pager and proceeded to summon Fury. However, just behind her, Chambers woke up. Bucky saw him take a gun from the one of the stunned agents and point it at Natasha’s head. Bucky could also see that he was resetting the gun from stun to kill. Bucky came up behind Chambers and wrestled the gun from him. For a moment, Bucky had the gun in his hands. He could kill one of the men working for the organization responsible for transforming him into a monster. He also knew, though, that he had to prove to the world that he was better than what HYDRA had made him into. He lowered the gun as Natasha came up behind Chambers and handcuffed him.

“You’re pathetic,” Chambers said, almost spitting in Bucky’s face.

“No,” said Bucky. “I’m not like you.”

Not long after, Fury came to the villa to take Chambers, Gamble, and the others into custody. “What have you got for me?” Fury asked. Natasha showed Fury all of the evidence that they had managed to find against Chambers. “Is this it?” he asked. Natasha tried to look stoic, but Bucky looked slightly alarmed. Fury then said, in an unenthusiastic voice, “Nice work Romanoff, Barnes.” He paused and then said, “You two will be transported back to the U.S. tomorrow morning at 1:00 in the afternoon. Enjoy your last night here.” Natasha looked at fury as he headed in another direction. He looked back at her and Bucky and gave them a courteous nod, seeming to say, “You two deserve some down time alone.”

That night, Natasha and Bucky treated themselves to gelato beside the Trevi Fountain. As Natasha swallowed a small bit of hers, she looked at Bucky and said, “I don’t normally open up to a lot of people, but I enjoyed working with you.”

“I enjoyed working with you too,” Bucky said before he took another bite of his. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two small coins. “I’m not really one who believes in destiny and fate, but I think I do want to make a wish.”

Natasha smiled at that and said, “So do I.”

They finished their gelato and then tossed the coins into the fountain. Natasha then looked at Bucky. At that moment, she felt no mistrust towards him. Rather, she knew that he cared for her and would protect her and the rest of the team. If his actions tonight had not proven that, she did not know what else could. They leaned toward one another and fell into a passionate kiss.

Bucky put his arms around Natasha as they kissed, and she did likewise. He had not felt at home for a long time, but now, with Natasha in his arms, he felt more at home than ever. They pulled apart for a moment and Natasha said, “I think I love you James Buchanan Barnes.”

“I love you too, Natalia,” he replied, pulling her into another, more passionate kiss.

It looked like their wishes of a happier and brighter future were about to come true.


End file.
